Hope(less)
by kaatiie
Summary: Newt met someone at the Crank Palace, who understands him better than anyone else


Newt closed his eyes as another scream from outside reached his ears. He sighed. Never had he imagined to end up in a place like this. A place where there was absolutely no hope. Even in the maze he knew that they would get out eventually. But this time it was different. This time he knew for sure that there was no escape. He wondered briefly about his friends. Had they already found his note? Would they even care? Would they try and find him? No. They were probably glad they got rid of him without having to deal with his craziness themselves.

Another scream. What the government thought about putting half crazy to utterly crazy people in one place was beyond him. Even he could see the flaws in this plan. People were running crazy. Fighting. Beating each other up or cutting others with glass. And the guards did nothing about that. They were probably too scared to interfere. Newt was lucky he didn't get on anyone's bad side…yet. It was only a matter of time until he was used as a punching bag as well.

Suddenly he felt some shuffling next to him. He didn't even bother to look up. So far, he'd ignored everyone who tried to talk to him. After several minutes of him not saying a single word, they'd eventually get bored of him. Apparently not this one.

Minutes passed as none of them said anything. Newt still did not know who decided to sit next to him and it took him all of his willpower to not look at them. It would only end in him being obligated to converse with whoever it was. Instead he kept staring intently at his shoes

After two more minutes of silence Newt heard something. Humming to be more precise. It came from the person next to him. The voice was definitely female. However, Newt still did not turn his head. The tune she was humming did not sound familiar at all, but he found himself (much to his dismay) relaxing. It was a beautiful melody and the girl's voice wasn't bad either. Though it was probably the most beautiful sound he'd ever heard, it sounded so wrong in this place. A place full of craziness and misery. Slowly Newt found himself getting angry. At what? He didn't know. He found himself getting angry more easily than usual and it was getting worse and worse.

When the girl kept humming, something inside of him snapped.

"Will you please stop that!" he almost shouted at the girl and looked at her for the first time.

The humming stopped instantly. The girl looked to be about his age. She had long brown hair that looked like she hadn't brushed or properly washed in days. Her brown eyes were looking at him. Instead of anger, bitterness or fear they mainly held curiosity in them. The rest of her face was quite ordinary. Under the thin layer of dirt across her cheek he made out some freckles. The clothes she was wearing were covered in dirt as well, but there did not seem to be any holes in them. At least from what Newt could see.

"Hi" she said, her voice sounding welcoming to his ears after all the screaming.

Realising that he was staring at her quite openly, he turned away quickly, a faint blush rising up his cheeks.

"Hello" he replied.

"You're new here." The girl stated.

"Yeah." Newt really was not in the mood of talking to her.

"Can you say more than one word at a time?"

Instead of answering her, he went back to ignoring her. Maybe she'd get the hint.

"Oh so now we are silent again?" obviously she hadn't. "Well that's okay. I can talk for the both of us-"

"Can you please leave?! I really don't want to talk to you. Go and bother somebody else."

Newt looked up at her again. This time she was glaring at him. Though he wouldn't say it out loud, he was kind of intimidated by her gaze.

"Okay now listen. I completely understand that you are miserable and frustrated and angry and god knows what else. We are all sitting in the same boat here. Still there is no need to be rude. I will leave, if that's what you want. I'm sorry for bothering you. But unlike you and ninety percent of the people here, I won't spend my last few sane days in self-pity. I want to more or less enjoy the bit of my sanity that's still left and I certainly don't need people like you to waste my time. Because they isn't really much to waste left anyway."

After her little rant she inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. To Newt it seemed like she was trying to calm herself down and not strangle him right then and there.

"I'm sorry" he was surprised how small his voice suddenly sounded. He had to admit, he did feel a bit guilty for snapping at her like that, when all she did was being nice. "I did not think about it like that."

"Of course not. No one does." She said, obviously still upset.

"You're right." He admitted.

"Of course I'm right. Now if you'll excuse me." Suddenly she stood up. However, before she could take one step Newt grabbed her hand.

"Please. Stay." He was 100 percent sure that his face was as red as a tomato, but at the moment he didn't care.

The girl's face softened and she sat down beside him again.

"Sorry again for being so rude. It's just" he run a hand through his hair. "I don't want to end up like that. I know no one does but", he sighed "seeing all these people around me slowly going crazy and knowing the same thing will happen to me…I hate it."

"Me too" she said in a low voice, moving closer to him. "Between you and I. I sometimes play with the thought of ending it myself."

Newt looked at her with raised eyebrows. "You mean suicide?"

"Yeah" the girl was playing with a loose end of her shirt. "Just like you said: I don't want to end like that. So why not end it when I'm still myself. More or less." She added.

Newt studied her for a few minutes. The two of them were staring at each other, no one dared to look away first.

"What's your name" she asked him.

"Newt."

"Well Newt, it's a pleasure." She extended her right arm, smiling at him. He carefully took her hand and shook it.

"What's yours?"

"Hope."

* * *

 **Please let me know what you think**


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